Running Two Manjaro Installations Side by Side 🚀

Introduction

Are you interested in testing different setups or simply exploring the power of Manjaro without affecting your main system? In this post, I’ll show you step-by-step how to install two Manjaro systems on one computer and configure GRUB to let you choose which one to boot into. Let’s get started! 😊

1. Preparation 🛠️

Backups: Always back up your important data before partitioning your drive. 💾
Live USB: Create a live USB with the Manjaro ISO.
Space: Ensure your drive has enough unallocated space or plan to resize existing partitions.

2. Partitioning Your Disk 🗂️

For two installations, you need to create separate partitions. Here’s what you can do:

Root Partitions: Create two separate root partitions (one for each installation).
EFI Partition: If your system uses UEFI, you can share a single EFI partition between both installations.
Swap (Optional): You can use a common swap partition or create individual swap partitions.

Tip: Use tools like GParted (available on the Manjaro live environment) to manage your partitions easily.

3. Installing the First Manjaro System 💻

Boot from your live USB.
Start the installer and select your desired partitions, ensuring that you choose the correct partition for the root directory.
Install the bootloader (GRUB) on the primary drive (usually /dev/sda or your respective device).
Complete the installation and reboot to verify that it boots correctly.

4. Installing the Second Manjaro System 💻

Boot again from the live USB for the second installation.
Choose the second root partition you prepared.
Important: When prompted for the bootloader installation, you have two options:
- Option A: Install GRUB to the EFI partition without overwriting the existing GRUB installation.
- Option B: Skip the bootloader installation and configure it manually later on.
Complete the installation and reboot.

5. Configuring GRUB to Detect Both Installations 🔧

After both installations are complete, you may need to update GRUB so that it recognizes both systems:

Boot into your primary Manjaro installation.
Open a terminal and run:

sudo update-grub
# or, if that command isn’t available:
sudo grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg

GRUB should now detect both Manjaro installations and list them in the boot menu. If not, double-check your partition setup and bootloader configuration.

6. Final Thoughts 💡

Running two Manjaro installations in parallel is a great way to experiment with different setups or keep your work and testing environments separate. It also makes sense if you want to reinitialize your drivers or reinstall Manjaro from scratch while preserving your old data on a separate installation. Just remember to handle partitions carefully and always back up your data. Enjoy exploring Manjaro! 🚀

Feel free to leave a comment below if you have any questions or run into any issues. Happy dual-booting! 😃

Read the full AI conversation about this guide here.